Ted Warren's ruminations on teaching, playing, writing, and listening. And also pizza.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Music and its Formats

Hey everyone,

I'm probably going to get some heat for this post but please remember, this is just my opinion.

What got me thinking about this was Record Store Day being celebrated last month.

Now, I'm advanced enough in years to remember frequenting record stores as one of the only ways to obtain music in my formative years. I have great memories of visiting record stores.

....I also have great memories of using dial phones and typewriters but I don't think I'd celebrate a day dedicated to either of these things just as I don't observe record store day.

I visited a record store recently and the prices were horrendous. I couldn't find a single title for less than $20. Part of my belief the whole record industry collapsed was that the prices were unreasonable. What's the average price of a full length recording on iTunes? About $9.99. Now what about sound quality of digital vs. vinyl? Vinyl wins hands down. But digital is the most major step forward as far convenience is concerned and I'm certainly willing to sacrifice some sound quality if I can keep all the recordings I own in my BlackBerry and take them wherever I want.

I had a very interesting conversation a while ago ( watch out for a name to get dropped on your foot, ouch!) with Dave Holland before a gig. We were talking about digital and how he was a fan of it. Some one asked him about how to download cover art ( this was in the early stages of iTunes) and he replied he'd never bothered. Now he has to have 10 years on me so he also grew up in the era of records being the only format, but he didn't have any romantic notions about the LP anymore than your average 14 year old, or myself.

I think sometimes we think the search for the records is the music, or the cover art is the music. or the sound is the music. But as far as I'm concerned, only the music is the music.